Equivalent Exchange
by Seto's Darkness
Summary: I'll admit that you're better than me AND I'll tell Sakura to date you. Under one condition: You have to let me kiss you. [SasuNaru NaruSasu Sasukebirthday fic]


**Warning : **shounen-ai, one (or two…or three) harmless (…or not XD) kiss, a sort-of-implied Sakura-bashing, mild language and yeah :P **Happy birthday, **Sasuke :) Things inside the **(parentheses) **are **not** authoress' notes. Oh, and Sasuke's back in Konoha—and this is Sasuke's seventeenth birthday. Not that it really matters, huh XD **Go SasuNaru! **–Waves SasuNaru flag-

**Disclaimer : **I don't own anything.

**Notes : **This is my official birthday fanfic for Sasuke-chan XD Coz I'm his number… err… **2** fan :P Or maybe **3** (Coz 1 is already Naruto… 2 is already Orochimaru) –w00t-

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It was one normal Sunday morning.

The sun rose in its normal way, piercing through the layers of tastefully-designed (by that, it meant those cute, orange swirly designs) orange-and-blue curtains that a certain blond put up on his windows. Of course, the orange-and-blue colors were there because Iruka-sensei said that orange and blue are complementary colors—**not** because the blue hue reminded him of a certain rival.

Of course not.

He did that face-splitting yawn, kicking back his blankets into a messy pile at the foot of his bed. He still stretched his arms and legs (…concurrently, of course, coz he's a great ninja!) at the same direction, followed by the same groan of appreciation at the kinks worked out. He still half-stumbled out his bed, only to get his ankles twisted beside the lump of dirty clothing piled up on the left side of his bed. He still fell towards the floor—his face still met with the un-washed socks and empty ramen cups.

It was really one, innocently, freakishly normal Sunday morning.

Properly woken up from the painful jabs on his chins and cheeks (…along with the unpleasant assault on his olfactory nerves), he lifted up his azure eyes to deliver a baleful stare to the calendar innocently hanging on his bedroom door, as though it's to blame for his early-morning 'accidents'.

The unmoving calendar told him that it's **July 23**, Sunday. He circled the date with his neon-orange marker. He squinted his eyes a bit to remember the reason for the circle, as he stood up and disentangled himself from the messy… mess on his bedroom.

"Aha! Day-off!" He enthused, pumping a fist up in the air. It's really a most-welcome thing, after all. Lately, their teacher has been rather fond of making them work like slaves even during week-ends. True, it may be because the last battle with Sound left rather… disastrous damages, but…

"Heh, a day-off!" He cheered again, deliberately ignoring the ramen cups (guh, how many ramen cups did he eat for the past month!) digging on his feet as he walked towards his kitchen-slash-dining room. At the back of his mind, he could faintly _sense_ some protests, as though there's a more serious, underlying reason for their day-off other than Kakashi-sensei being lazier than usual or the Old Hag being generous.

But then again, a day-off is a day-off.

He finally managed to make his way towards his kitchen. He skillfully opened his drawers and found three instant ramen bowls. He did things that he normally did during Sundays—heck, even normal week-days.

He, of course, didn't know that his perfectly normal Sunday is going to change dramatically, within the next few moments.

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**-- Equivalent Exchange -- **

**Uchiha Sasuke Birthday Fanfic**

**-- Sasuke x Naruto --**

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**

It seemed that his 'normal Sunday' isn't as normal as he thought it would be.

For starters, Konoha _smelled_ too flowery and girly (…if not nauseatingly suffocating) today. He strolled down the streets with an unhurried pace, and he couldn't help but notice that most girls he saw looked either crazed or heartbroken. He shrugged off the little observation and proceeded with his leisurely walk.

He saw Sakura-chan giggling uncontrollably with Ino in tow. It's weird—because it's one of the rare times he saw the two friends not at each others' throats. He did the usual thing—he loudly asked his pink-haired teammate out for a romantic date, but he got not only the strong-fisted punch from the medic-nin-in-training, but also a heavy whack on the head from her blonde best friend.

He shrugged off the event again, too used with Sakura's rejections and violence to be hurt by her actions. Though, Sakura's more short-tempered than usual today…

After eating a snack (…steaming hot miso ramen from Ichiraku, of course!), he made his way towards the training grounds, completely planning to train until he couldn't walk anymore. Being Chuunin wasn't as busy as he thought—so he had plenty of time to train hard for the upcoming Jounin exams.

His trip towards the training grounds was halted by the presence of his dark-haired teammate standing beside one of the trees on the path, staring vacantly at him. He grinned brightly at his newest companion, privately cheering for a chance to spar with Sasuke (despite the fact that they spar at every possible moment already).

"Yo, _teme_!" He called out, and the brooding Uchiha pushed himself off the sturdy tree he was leaning slightly against. "Wanna spar?" He invited, though he if he knew Sasuke as well as he believed, the answer would be…

"…No." Sasuke's face didn't even morph from the carefully blank look to something with even the faintest acknowledgement.

EHH!

"Ehh!" Naruto asked, looking more than mildly put-out.

"…Let's make a deal, Naruto," Sasuke continued, not bothering to answer Naruto's protests—not bothering to make an explanation for calling his teammate by his first-name (instead of his usual insults) suddenly.

"A deal?" Naruto echoed thoughtfully, immediately forgetting the fact that he should feel unimportant because Sasuke doesn't want to spar with him.

"…Yes." The dark-haired male spoke slowly, as though he was talking to somebody with an intellect with the same level as rocks.

Naruto scrunched up his nose thoughtfully, making his cheeks curl slightly upwards, succeeding in making him resemble an overgrown, golden cat. Then, he un-scrunched his nose and his impossibly-blue eyes were wide and curious. "Sure, I guess," He said a bit hesitantly.

"…What's the deal?" He asked innocently. Sasuke looked torn between amusement, embarrassment and something unreadable. It all faded back into his usual impassive stare, though.

"…I'll admit that you're better than me," The Uchiha said slowly once more, pronouncing each syllable clearly, without any room for stupid misinterpretations. Naruto's face looked disbelieving, but gleeful at the same time. It seemed that distrust never seeped into the Uzumaki's thoughts regarding their little deal.

"And…" Here, Sasuke paused, as though unsure. "I'll tell Sakura to date you." He said those words with something akin to repulse and disgust swimming beneath the obsidian orbs. The late morning sunlight filtered brightly through the trees surrounding the training grounds—some of the rays hit squarely on the thick mop of bluish-black hair, casting a morose shadow on the Uchiha's face.

With the typical Uzumaki fashion—Naruto agreed to the deal, without even hearing the other end of the too-good-to-be-true bargain. After exclaiming "SURE!" with his joyous fox-grin, he blinked cutely, before he almost-shyly (of course he's not shy! He's very manly… and he can't be shy! Or not…) asked the Uchiha about the other part of their deal.

"You have to let me kiss you," Sasuke said that simply, as though he was merely commenting about something totally mundane. Naruto spluttered indignantly, waving his arms around in protest and embarrassment.

"Saa—Sasuke, stop saying **weird** things!" He protested loudly, walking backwards as Sasuke walked calmly towards him, face still etched into that statue-expression: cold and expressionless.

"…You already agreed, _Naruto_," Sasuke breathed into the small space between them, reminding the blond of the enthusiastically-spoken word of agreement, before he leaned downwards, and touched his lips with Naruto's trembling ones. The kiss was soft and gentle, something unexpected from the merciless, arrogant Uchiha and the boisterous, hyperactive blond.

Sasuke pulled away after a few moments, eyes wide and breathing rapid. Naruto was still leaning heavily against the tree, unmindful of the wood bark digging to the back of his black-and-orange jacket. Actually, the kiss was rather _nice_…

Naruto opened his eyes weakly and his heart stopped. If he hated Sasuke's blank look as he approached the blond earlier, he absolutely _loathed_ the depressed, miserable expression on the Uchiha's pale-skinned face.

Sasuke's face was still emotionless (aside from that tidbit of misery present inside those charcoal-hued irises), but his hands were mildly shaking. He looked cross with himself, as though he did something he vowed never to, but did so anyway. Amidst the self-anger showing itself steadily on the Uchiha's face, however, was the flicker of contentment.

"…I'll go find Sakura… and tell her to date you." Sasuke hurriedly said, looking nauseous as he spoke those words, before he disappeared as sudden as he arrived, leaving Naruto to stare after his most important person with an expression of bafflement and something alike pain.

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**

Okay, so he wasn't going to deny that he was a bit dizzy after Sasuke suddenly claimed his second kiss. But he's _Chuunin_, now, damn it, and if he's going to be Hokage, he needed to hone his stealth and spying skills!

His determination paid off after a couple of minutes of search, though. He spotted the Uchiha (…that fan-like symbol is rather conspicuous, coupled with the I'm-better-than-you stance) near the Uchiha Clan Estate. He also noticed that Sakura-chan's there, hair nicely ironed and dress fabulously-new. She was stuttering and blushing when he arrived at the scene—so he hid himself skillfully behind one of the tall, spooky trees surrounding the ancestral homes.

He listened (…and watched) to the conversation with rapt attention.

"Sa-Sasuke-kun, here's your present," She shyly said, both hands shoved the red-and-silver-packaged box to the moody teen. Sasuke stared at the present with something akin to repugnance, but calloused hands pulled the gift away from Sakura's nicely-manicured hands.

Naruto wondered, once more, about this not-so-normal-anymore Sunday.

"Thanks," Sasuke stated blandly, as though he was forced to say those words by something or someone more powerful (…and hence, more demonic) than he is. Sakura, however, looked oblivious to the obvious abhorrence radiating off the dark-eyed male.

"Ne, Sasuke-kun—" Sakura started, fiddling tensely with the hem of her flower-embroidered pink blouse.

"Sakura—" Sasuke interjected, and even Naruto was surprised to hear Sasuke say her name with such ferocity.

"Yes, Sasuke-kun?" She asked with hope shining adamantly inside her emerald eyes. Naruto waited for Sasuke's words—suddenly remembering their… uh, _deal_. His lips tingled (without his bidding, of course) at the thought.

"…Date Naruto—_today._" He said forcefully, before he ran a hand through the long mop of black-blue hair. He actually looked nervous. "I—I can't accept this. Your date with Naruto…" He sounded hesitant, once again. "Your date with Naruto—let that be your gift," He said simply, and he looked cross with himself again.

Something clicked inside the blond's mind, as he listened in. Somehow… everything now made perfect sense…

Apparently, that was the same case with their female teammate. "Sasuke-kun…" She said softly, almost brokenly. "…It has always been that way, ne?" Her question was more like a heavy statement that Sasuke didn't deny in any way.

Naruto heard the sound of Sakura's gift crinkling against the solid ground, as Sasuke disappeared once more. He heard Sakura's high-heels clicking against the earth as she moved to pick her refused present, but she suddenly stopped.

"Naruto," She called out gently, but the blond didn't come out from his hiding. But his azure eyes could see the understanding smile present on his close friend's demure face.

"Make his birthday a happy one, Naruto," Sakura softly requested, before she stood up, mildly-dusted gift tucked securely on one hand, and made her way towards the city, away from the lonely-looking Uchiha Estate.

**

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**

"I figured you'd be here," Uzumaki Naruto, sixteen years old, stated, smiling slightly at the sudden stiffness that wound around Uchiha Sasuke's shoulders at the sound of his voice.

"Hiding from your fangirls—I should have known," Naruto continued speaking, steady footsteps diminishing the distance between the two ninjas. He waited for a long while before he set out to find the brooding male. He spent his time _thinking_, while on top of the Hokage Mountain, and realized that maybe, some things didn't need thinking.

Especially if those things involved decisions regarding his most important person.

"…You're stupid, you know," The aspiring-Hokage casually commented, earning a derisive snort from the other teen. Sasuke turned around and faced the owner of the apartment he's standing in front of.

An awfully-familiar taunting smirk is firmly in place on Sasuke's smirk-y lips. "I don't want to hear that from you, _usoratonkachi_," He dryly said, black eyes staring straight into Naruto's blue ones. The late afternoon sky made Sasuke and Naruto look like they were blushing faintly pink. Or maybe they were—_things involving this don't need thinking_, Naruto reminded himself fervently.

"Seriously—you push me over to Sakura-chan," Naruto continued lightly, eyes not missing the barely-imperceptible flinch that ran across Sasuke's rigid posture, "And you think that it's only equal to **one** kiss!"

"Hn," Sasuke replied vaguely, a bit confused with the blond's reaction. He crossed his arms over his chest—a defensive gesture.

Naruto grinned. "…First, you guessed wrongly about my interest, Sasuke." The Uchiha's elegant eyebrow rose in interest. Naruto kept on walking forward, until their sandals are toe-to-toe to each other. "Pushing the **love of your life** to other people is something only present in those dumb chick flicks, you know."

"Love of my life, huh," Sasuke murmured dispassionately, though his eyes glittered with something feral and something like blissful happiness.

"You're lucky the love of your life is a genius, like me," Naruto said with a cheery grin, arms folding over Sasuke's slightly taller shoulders. "I didn't resent you for pushing me towards Sakura-chan," The blond continued, grin melting into a wide smile as the Uchiha's hands snaked to hold him firmly on his waist.

"You're such an idiot," Sasuke muttered, but there's an unmistakable hint of affection lacing his otherwise-menacing tone. "So… how many kisses should that be equal to?" Sasuke asked slyly, head dipping forward, while Naruto raised his chin in anticipation.

"…I dunno—infinity?" Naruto murmured dreamily, the words lost in the embrace of their lips, illuminated by the warm scarlet hues of the setting sun.

"I'm surprised you even know that word, _dobe_," Sasuke commented in-between their celebratory kisses.

"Ch, shut up and just kiss me, birthday-boy," Naruto said, before standing on his tiptoes to wedge their lips more firmly.

Infinity, indeed.

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OWARI**

It's short and it's rather silly, I know. I rarely write fanfics like this, but I thought I'd make one, if only to make my Sasuke-loving heart happy :)

I know that Naruto, probably isn't THAT clueless, but then again, it's too cute and it fits so nicely with the story plot :P

…Sasuke's birthday is July 23, right? I'll die of embarrassment if I got the wrong date -.-;;

**Reviews **(i.e. constructive criticism, comments, suggestions, requests, challenges, ideas, etc) are welcome—very much so. **Thank you** for the people who continue to read and review my works! You guys are the best XD


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